


How Did This Happen Here?

by IJM



Category: General Hospital
Genre: Emotional triggers, Gen, Hate Crime, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-09
Updated: 2020-06-09
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:08:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,987
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24633598
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IJM/pseuds/IJM
Summary: Cameron & Trina are targeted by racists for dating. Solely from Cameron’s viewpoint.
Relationships: Cameron Webber/Trina Robinson, Franco Baldwin/Elizabeth Baldwin
Comments: 5
Kudos: 15





	How Did This Happen Here?

**Author's Note:**

> Do What You Can. I’m not a leader or influencer, but I am a fanfic writer. I want to stand in solidarity with BLM, but I recognize I cannot authentically write this from Trina’s viewpoint.

Cameron Webber was in a haze. He heard voices but couldn’t open his eyes. He knew the voices—his mother, stepfather, step-grandfather, and Nurse Johnson.

“I can’t believe this happened here,” Elizabeth Baldwin said. “I just can’t believe it. They’re good kids. They weren’t bothering anyone.” She paused, “How is Trina?”

“Elizabeth, you know I can’t tell you. You’re not family.” Epiphany Johnson responded.

“She was there too,” Elizabeth argued. “I need to know that she’s okay. Cam needs to know when he wakes up.”

“Physically, she’ll be fine, but that’s all I can give you,” Epiphany offered.

“You haven’t said much,” Cameron heard the somewhat gruff tone of Scott Baldwin, his step-grandfather.

“If I start talking, I won’t stop,” Franco Baldwin answered. “I’m mad as hell.”

“You have every right to be mad as hell,” Scotty assured him. “We all do. Someone will pay for this.”

Elizabeth scoffed. “And what good will that do? Cameron and Trina were attacked! Attacked, just for being together at the homecoming dance. Who does that? How did this happen here?”

“There are racists everywhere,” Franco said. “Portia said that Trina was certain this was racially motivated. They used slurs while they were beating Cam. Maybe I can find Portia and get an update…”

Cam heard a door open and close and believed that Franco had left to find Trina’s mom. Franco referred to his being beaten. He couldn’t feel any pain, just a fuzziness all over, especially in his mind.  
Homecoming.

There had a been a dance. He had had a great time dancing with Trina, and they snuck out the back way of the gymnasium to get some time alone to try that kissing thing again. Only they weren’t alone…

*************************  
Cameron missed the fuzzy feeling he had before. Now he could feel every ache, every cut, every contusion, every broken bone. And it was miserable.

“You look like you’re uncomfortable. Do you need something for the pain?”

“No,” Cameron mumbled, answering his concerned mother.

“Poor kid,” he heard Franco say.

He heard the door open.

“I wanted to speak to Cameron myself,” a woman said. “If he’s up to it.”

Cam was not sure who this woman was just from her voice. He opened his eyes.

“I don’t think he’s ready to talk yet,” Elizabeth told the woman. “He had major surgery.”

He did? That partially explained why he felt like he’d been hit by a truck.

“I understand,” she said. “I’ll come back.”

“Wait,” Cam stopped her with a single word. He opened his eyes and through slightly blurred vision saw Jordan Ashford, the police commissioner. “You’re blurry.”

Elizabeth and Franco were standing on either side of his bed. Franco took one of his hands and Cam didn’t even mind.

His stepfather was upset. “You have a concussion,” Franco told him. “The blurry vision should only be temporary.”

Normally, his mother would have been the one talking about medical stuff, but she was holding onto his other hand and crying softly. “I’m okay,” he lied to make Elizabeth feel better.

“You’re brave and a fighter, but you’re not okay. I’m going to personally see to it that whoever did this goes down for it.”

Scotty was there still—or again—he wasn’t sure how much time had passed.

“Do you think you can answer some questions for Mrs. Ashford?” Scotty asked.

Cam knew he was in full Lawyer Mode. Well, maybe there was a little bit of Grandpa Mode in his words too. “I can talk,” Cam said, trying to sit up in his hospital bed.

“Don’t move,” Franco told him. “I’ll adjust the bed.”  
He felt his head moving upward as the bed was adjusted. The bed wasn’t moving quickly, but the motion made him feel a little queasy. “Is that better?”

“Yeah, it’s good.” He swallowed the bile that was in his throat. He didn’t want to upset Elizabeth by getting sick on top of whatever major surgery he had had.

“I’m sorry this happened to you and Trina,” Jordan’s voice was sympathetic.

“How is Trina?” Cam asked, panicked for a moment. “Two of those guys dragged her away while the other three were beating me up.” He spoke quickly, “I tried to get to her, but I couldn’t.”

“It’s impossible for one guy to fight off that many,” Franco was trying to comfort him. “There were five of them?” he asked as if he had heard five later than the rest of Cam’s sentence.

“Yeah,” Cam answered. He knew Franco was angry that he had not been able to protect Cam. His stepfather saw protecting Cam and his brothers as a top priority.

“Do you know their names?” Jordan pressed.

“Richie Voorhees, um… Pete McCallan, Jeremy Conlin… um… and the two that had Trina were Benjamin Lee, and… I have to think… Cliff Adams.” He was proud of himself for remembering all five of their last names. Port Charles High was a medium sized school. He knew most of the students.

“Excellent memory, son,” Scott said.

“What about Trina? Did they hurt her?” Cam asked.

“She’s okay physically,” Jordan used the same turn of phrase that Epiphany Johnson had.

“What did they do to her?” Cam asked. “I need to see her. Can I go see her?”

“I’m not being evasive,” Jordan told him. “I can’t feed you information while questioning you on the record. By the way, this is on the record in case you didn’t realize it.”

“Oh, yeah, that makes sense.”

“Tell me what you remember.”

Cameron took a minute to gather his thoughts. “The dance was almost over so Trina and I went outside. We were behind the gym by the trees.  
“These guys were just there, like, I didn’t see them coming at all. They said something to me about dating a Black girl and called her whore.”

“Did they call Trina ‘Black girl’?” Jordan asked for clarification.

“Um, no…” He couldn’t say what they had called her. He was extremely uncomfortable as it hit him that Mrs. Ashford was a Black girl too. Would she make him say that word? “They used a slur for African Americans.” Cam wondered if he said the right thing. It was nerve wracking.

Jordan gave him a slight smile. “I’m sorry this is making you uncomfortable. You know if you must testify in court, you will have to say the slur they used. So, you better practice ahead of time.”

Cameron’s eyes bulged. Mrs. Ashford had just told him to practice saying that word.

“Cam,” Jordan said softly, “I’ve heard it before.”  
“I’m sorry,” he squeaked out.

“You haven’t done anything wrong,” Jordan told him.

“Don’t sweat it, kid,” Scotty interrupted. “They’re juveniles, so they’ll probably plead out. Unless the DA decides to prosecute them as adults since this was a hate crime.”

“Hate crime?” Cam repeated. He knew what the term meant. He just never realized he, a straight white boy from the right side of the tracks could be a victim of a hate crime.

*************************  
Cameron was feeling a bit better physically when Trina came to visit him. He had been beaten badly enough that his spleen had been removed. It would take several weeks to recover. 

“No one will tell me what happened to you,” Cam said to Trina. “I’m sorry I don’t remember everything. What happened? Are you okay?”

Trina’s usually vibrant personality was dampened. “I’m all right,” she said.   
But she wasn’t all right. She had a hand shaped bruise on her left cheek.

“Someone hit you,” he observed. “Which one was it?”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“Yes, it does!”

“They hit me, and they grabbed my breasts,” she told him. “But I didn’t tell me mother that. She was already upset enough. So, you better not tell her either.” 

“I’m so sorry,” He reached for her hand, wanting to hold onto her and give her a hug. “You need to tell your mom.”

“It’s fine,” Trina brushed off his concern. 

“Look, she’s going to set me up with appointments to see Dr. Collins or maybe Franco for therapy. I kind of want to do art therapy because I love art, but it’s kind of weird ‘cause he’s your dad.”

“He doesn’t talk about his patients. He can’t. Art therapy did a lot of good for Jake and Aiden. He’s actually a rather good therapist if my brothers are any indication.” 

“Cool,” Trina said. “We need to break up. Not that we were like exclusive or anything, but we need to stop going out.”

Cam was floored that she had just announced they needed to break up with such ease and conviction. “Because of those guys? Trina, we can’t let other people dictate our lives.”

“Maybe you can’t,” Trina responded. “I don’t want this to happen again and you don’t have to worry about it happening again if we stop seeing each other.”

“But,” Cam sputtered. “I really like you.”

“I really like you too, Cam. Just not enough.”

Trina’s words were like a slap to his face.

“Did I do something wrong?” he asked. “I’m sorry I couldn’t stop those two from grabbing you. I’ll go after them though. I’ll get Dev and some of the other guys—”

“No, you won’t!” Trina’s voice was stern. “You’re not going to go after some sort of vigilante justice and use me as the reason. There are enough criminals in this town who think they’re above the law. That’s what got my father killed.”

“I didn’t mean to—” Cam didn’t finish his sentence. He didn’t mean to remind her of her father. He didn’t mean to make her uncomfortable. He didn’t mean to get her assaulted for going out with him. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I’m sorry being with me got you hurt.”

Trina rolled her eyes, “You don’t get it do you?” she asked pointedly. “Being with you didn’t get me hurt. Being with me got you hurt.”

Cam wasn’t sure what to say. He understood what she meant because of the way she said it. And he hated everything about it.

“That’s why we can’t see each other anymore.”

“I’d fight—”

“It’s not just about what you’re willing to deal with. Cam, I’m not willing to go through this again. Not with you and not with anyone else.”

********************   
“They took the plea,” Scotty told Cam, Elizabeth, and Franco as he joined them for dinner. “All five of them. They were all sentenced as adults, but the hate crime was taken off the charges. The three that beat you up got 15 each for assault and battery. The two that assaulted Trina got a minimum of 18 because of the sexual battery.”

“I’m so glad she came forward with the truth,” Franco commented solemnly. 

Cam only knew that his stepfather had been working with Trina in art therapy. They never acknowledged their mutual knowledge of the sexual battery. He was conscientious enough to not betray Trina or to ask Franco to break patient confidentiality.

“It sucks that they got a plea deal,” Cam commented.

“I know, kid. But that’s how the law works. It takes less time and costs the state less when someone pleads than to prosecute. Getting all five to plead was a stroke of luck. It’s hard to prove hate crimes.”

Cam nodded but frowned. “I guess you and I see luck differently.” He had lost the girl and his previous worldview. Maybe it was part of growing up. Maybe it wasn’t. Maybe there were people older than him who still didn’t understand that Trina was targeted for her skin color and that he was targeted for her skin color. He wasn’t sure what he could do to make a difference, but when he figured that out, he promised himself and Trina that he would do it—whatever it was. Someone had to make a difference, even if it was just one person at a time. 

—END

**Author's Note:**

> Not for profit.  
> No copyright infringement intended.  
> For entertainment purposes only.


End file.
